Wawrinka claims he suffered panic attacks before US Open final against Djoker
US Open champion Stan Wawrinka has revealed that he suffered an anxiety attack minutes before walking on to the center court at the Arthur Ashe stadium for his final against Novak Djokovic. The World No. 3 also said that he deliberately tried to hurt himself to de-stress during the match.
Stan Wawrinka has become the Man of Sundays winning his final matches with consummate ease again and again. The Swiss lost his final at the St. Petersburg final to young sensation Alexander Zverev, but until then has been on a roll winning
"A lot of people are asking me how I was able to take the court, nonchalantly, when five minutes prior to that I had a stress attack and I was trying to hold back tears. I tried I wasn't able to," Wawrinka told Sport24.
The 31-year-old Swiss also revealed that he deliberately tried to 'hurt' himself during the match in an effort to reduce the stress that was building within him.
"I was close to breaking point - the moment where you let it all out, physically and nervously. I really felt I was at my limit. Maybe with the
"So, how did I do it? I'll tell you. I hurt myself. I tried to extend rallies as much as possible - one more shot, and another - to make the legs churn and not the head," he added.
Wawrinka finally went to down the World No.1 6-7 (1-7), 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 for a second straight time after the 2015 French Open.
Wawrinka had taken a physically taxing journey to the final with long matches in his third round clash against Dan Evans and against Japan's Kei Nishikori in the semi-final.
"When I'm nervous like that, the fatigue feels a lot,